Sunday, July 24, 2011

This is somewhat late in coming, but I recently learned of the passing of Hall of Fame player and manager, Dick Williams. Mr. Williams signed for me at the 2010 All Star Fan Festival in Anaheim. I remember him as a very professional, if not a bit overwhelmed with the whole autographing experience of the convention.

Williams died of a ruptured aortic aneurysm at a hospital near his home in Henderson, NV on July 7, 2011. This now marks the fifth Hall of Famer in my collection who has passed away in the last year and a half - a really sad stretch of time for baseball's alumni community.

While attending the recent Shrine of the Eternals ceremony for the Baseball Reliquary, I had the privilidge of meeting Dodger great Maury Wills. Wills was being inducted by the Reliquary for his contribution to redefining the game of baseball - especially in how the stolen base was used on the field of play.

This was really a wonderful event. Several people mentioned that Wills was the one baseball player who deserved to be in Cooperstown more than anyone else not within those sacred walls.

You can see from my program that there are several other autographs. None are former players, but most are connected to the baseball world in some way. You can click on the image to see a closer shot and to get a sense of who was in attendance.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

While reading an autograph through-the-mail collectors forum, I noticed that quite a few people were having success with requests from Stan Musial through his "Stan the Man" office. So I sent off a quick request, but all I got back was my blank 3x5 card and a postcard.

The post card is a nice souvenir. It features a quick bio on one of baseball's greatest players, and on the back gives some details about how to obtain autographed merchandise (for a fee, of course).

I attended my first Dodger game of the season this week and was lucky enough to snag two autographs during batting practice from the opposing team. Pitchers Ubaldo Jimenez and Matt Lindstrom came over and signed for a few fans in the right field corner. It probably helped that there were a few fans decked out in Rockies gear.

Jimenez has had an interesting start to his young career. In 2010 he pitched the first no-hitter in Rockies team history, was named a National League All Star, and looked like a lock for the Cy Young award last year before falling off in the second half of the season.

Lindstrom has also had an interesting career. He has already played for three different teams - the Marlins, Astros, and Rockies. He is a hard throwing righty who has been closer at times throughout his career. Additionally, he was named to the roster of the USA team for the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

It pays to follow other bloggers. Today I learned through the amazing Dodger-themed blog, Vin Scully is my Homeboy, that Matt Kemp would be a surprise guest at Bank of America in Burbank for a member appreciation event. I was able to snag his autograph on this Dodgertown baseball that I caught during batting practice at Dodger Stadium.

But that's not all! I also recognized former MLB pitcher, Dave Stewart, who happens to be Mr. Kemp's agent, so I got him to sign the ball as well! Mr. Stewart is most likely remembered for his pitching career with the Oakland A's, but I enjoyed watching him as a member of the World Series winning Blue Jays team from 1993.

Dave Stewart was not elected to the Hall of Fame after his career, but Matt Kemp certainly has a chance if he continues to play as well as he has played so far in his young career.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

A recent comment on one of my old posts passed on some good insight from an avid collector. He has a few blogs, notably posting his collection of Hall of Famer autographs at Collecting Cooperstown. Here is what he passed on...

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

I learned today that Twins' great Harmon Killebrew passed away after battling for months with esophageal cancer. Mr. Killebrew is the fourth player to pass away while I've been trying to collect an autograph from every living Hall of Famer. Surprisingly, I don't think anyone has passed away who's autograph I haven't yet collected during this same stretch of time.

Monday, April 11, 2011

I was so happy to get this autograph today. First, it has been almost five months since I last received an autograph request in the mail, and second this autograph is from a former Toronto Blue Jay and one of my favorite players while I was growing up.

Roberto Alomar was an All-Star second baseman and certainly a fan favorite in Toronto. He is set to be inducted this summer along with Bert Blyleven and another member of the Blue Jays family, general manager Pat Gillick. Alomar will be the first player inducted as a Toronto Blue Jay, and has recently signed on in the front office with his former team.

Alomar was nice enough to return a baseball card (which I did not send him) signed in black sharpie. I originally thought it wasn't real, but on closer inspection it appears to be an actual signature. I originally sent an autograph request to Alomar's home address, but never got anything back. After the announcement that he was being inducted, I sent a request to the Baseball Hall of Fame address, and almost 100 days later, got the response I was hoping for.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

This year the Angels are hosting a fan festival to promote the organization. This event looks to be pretty sweet if you are an Angels fan with plenty of events scheduled including an autograph signing.

I'm not sure if there will be any Hall of Famers present, but I won't be able to make it for a few different reasons. Tickets are only $5, and you get in to the preseason game later that day. Seems like a pretty amazing deal to me.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

They say no news is good news. I guess I should have been happy that nothing was happening on the autograph collecting front, because today I recieved the news that Dodger great, Duke Snider passed away at the age of 84.

Second-baseman Roberto Alomar and pitcher Bert Blyleven were both elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America today. They will join Pat Gillick in 2011's induction ceremony. I've already sent out an autograph request to Alomar, but I may try through the Hall of Fame this time to see if that works better. Blyleven has charged for his autograph for years, but I may as well try sending him an autograph request through the Hall of Fame too.

There are certainly a few players on this ballot I would have voted in if I had that power, but alas, that is not how the system works.

Congrats once again to these two great players. ESPN's press release can be read right here.

I have created this blog to document my quest to obtain an autograph from any inducted member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Most autograph requests will be sent by mail. If you have any questions or comments, please send them my way!

It can take time to hear back from Hall of Fame ballplayers, so this blog will also be used to showcase other baseball autographs in my collection.